Dandy Lion
by DandelionSunset
Summary: Peeta finds himself nervous before going onstage as the Cowardly Lion in a third grade play. Katniss helps him find his courage. One-shot from the 'Sever' universe.


**AN:** Hi! This is just a little drabble from the _Sever_ universe (though you don't really need to have read that to understand this). Hungrytribute on tumblr sent me the prompt of Peeta playing the Cowardly Lion in 3rd grade with Katniss (as mentioned in Sever, chapter 22, The First Date: Part 2). Hope you guys enjoy it! :) You can find me on tumblr at **dandelion-sunset**! Thanks for reading!

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 **Dandy Lion**

He peeked out from behind the stage curtain and immediately realized it was a bad idea. His stomach plummeted to his feet as his eyes swept over the crowded auditorium. All he could hear was his mother's voice echoing in his head, telling him how he was going to screw up and that this whole thing was a waste of time. He could see her in the third row sitting next to his father, looking as if she'd rather be anywhere else. Peeta wished that she was. He hadn't wanted her to come, but she did anyways. He guessed it was probably to watch him with a critical eye and remind him later of all the things he did wrong.

He closed the curtain and took a deep breath, but it did nothing to calm his nerves. All at once, after weeks of rehearsals, he was certain that once he stepped foot on stage he was going to freeze up and forget his lines. He was going to ruin the entire show for everyone.

He couldn't do this.

With a defeated sigh, he slumped down onto a stair and buried his face into the paws of his costume. They were only minutes away from starting the show – how was he going to get out of it now? He felt like running away and hiding until it was over, but he knew there was no way Miss Trinket could find a replacement on such short notice, let alone get them in costume and makeup. It was far too late to turn back. He was doomed.

Why did he even audition for this? Why did he ever think this would be a good idea?

Peeta let out another sigh and buried his face a little more. He knew _exactly_ why he auditioned, but now it seemed ridiculous. He never thought he'd actually get a part, especially as one of the main characters. He simply wanted to catch the eye of Katniss Everdeen, a girl who he'd been crushing on since before he could even remember, and without a doubt, he knew with her amazing voice and love for The Wizard of Oz, she'd be cast as Dorothy. He would've been happy being cast as a tree. But no, he was given the role of the Cowardly Lion.

In all honesty, he'd never even seen the movie before he got the part. Afterwards, he asked his dad to buy it and proceeded to spend every night for the next two weeks watching it in his room. His older brothers taunted him for liking a 'girly movie' so much, but he didn't let it bother him. He was cast for the role—a role he hadn't realized was so big—and he wanted to get it perfect. He didn't want to let anyone down, but most of all he didn't want to disappoint Katniss.

He didn't tell his family he'd gotten the role, not until a week before the show. He didn't want to take any chances of his mother forcing him to quit. As he'd expected, she wasn't happy at all when she found out. In fact she was downright livid. Still, she allowed him to keep the part, making the snide remark of how 'he'd learn his lesson when he embarrassed himself onstage'.

And now here he was, about to prove her right.

Peeta jumped as he felt someone sit down beside him and place a hand on his back. He glanced over to find Miss Trinket looking at him with a concerned smile.

"Everything okay, dear? Having a bit of pre-show jitters?"

He shrugged and nodded. "More than a bit, actually."

"Well, I know for a fact that you're going to do a splendid job! Everyone gets a tad nervous before a show, but you've got this part in the bag, Peeta! You know your lines and character better than anyone," she encouraged brightly. Peeta shrugged again. Katniss probably knew his part better than he did, but Miss Trinket was only trying to cheer him up so he didn't correct her.

He was thankfully saved from having to reply as Miss Trinket got distracted by two of his classmates throwing plastic prop apples at each other.

"Cato, Ethan! Stop monkeying around this instant!" Even through his anxiety, he couldn't help cracking a tiny smile at her wording, for they were indeed dressed like flying monkeys. Before heading over to split them up, she turned to Peeta and reassured quickly, "You're going to be a _dandy lion_!"

His eyes widened for a moment before narrowing in indignant confusion.

"I don't want to be a stupid flower," he muttered under his breath as Miss Trinket separated his rambunctious classmates. It was only a second later that he realized she'd said _dandy_ lion and not dandelion, which made a whole lot more sense. The Wizard of Oz didn't even _have_ dandelions. Great, now he was hearing words wrong—he was undoubtedly going to say them wrong too. He felt queasy and lightheaded, and was working up his nerve to find a place to hide, when a familiar voice brought him back.

"She didn't mean a _dandelion_ ," Katniss Everdeen stated with a short, amused giggle."She meant you'll be a dandy _lion._ And she's right, you know. You're perfect for the part."

His face burned and his mouth went dry as he looked up at her. She looked absolutely radiant as always, with her dark hair in two long braids, her gray eyes bright and full of life, and a friendly smile that made his stomach do somersaults.

He quickly averted his eyes to the floor so he could regain his ability to speak.

"Right now I just feel like I'm going to mess up your show," he mumbled.

Silence followed for a moment afterwards. Peeta's heart clenched in his chest; he shouldn't have said anything. Now she was probably mad at him for putting the cowardly in Cowardly Lion. Katniss worked so hard and was so perfect in her role, and she didn't deserve to have the show ruined by him. But he was going to ruin it whether or not he played his part. There was no getting around it.

"This isn't _my_ show. It's _our_ show. All of ours. And the only way you can mess up anything is if you don't do anything," Katniss finally replied. He glanced up at her to see the smile gone from her face, replaced by a sympathetic frown. Before he could think of a reply, she sat down beside him and took his paws in her hands. His entire body froze up and his heart pounded so hard he thought it might explode. A small, reassuring smile curved her lips as she continued, "You know, the Cowardly Lion is really my favorite character. He's sweet and very brave. He thought just because he was afraid of things that he didn't have courage, but in order to have courage, you have to be a _little_ scared. I've seen you in rehearsals and trust me, you're going to do fine."

Peeta's gaze drifted from her face and down to her hands, which were giving his paws a gentle, encouraging squeeze. He was thankful he was wearing a costume because his hands were sweating like crazy.

"It's not the same as rehearsal though," he shrugged. "There's _a lot_ of people out there. What if I forget my lines or sing something wrong and everyone laughs or boos me off stage?"

"Believe me, no one is going to do that. Even if by the off chance you get something wrong, everyone makes mistakes. _I_ might even make a mistake and I've seen the movie dozens of times. And that's okay. This is all for fun," she assured. Peeta looked sideways at her and managed a small smile. He was still nervous, but her words sent a small thrill of confidence through him. Maybe he _could_ do this. For her. "You know, right now you're being a lot like the Cowardly Lion. You just need to find your courage. I know you have it."

As he was getting ready to reply, Miss Trinket clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.

"Places, places my little stars! Chins up, smiles on everyone!" she instructed enthusiastically. Peeta's stomach tied itself in knots all over again. With an exasperated sigh, Miss Trinket's attention was diverted as she informed a fellow classmate, "Clove, sweetie, the broom is _not_ for hitting people."

"Well, it's time," Katniss stated with an air of finality as she stood up and extended a hand for him to take. "So do you think you can do this? For us? I mean, the show is nothing without the Cowardly Lion. We need you."

Peeta took in a deep breath and nodded as he placed his paw in her hand and stood up.

"I think I'm good now," he answered, mirroring her smile. "Thank you."

"Anytime, dandelion," she winked. Peeta felt the knots in his stomach be replaced by millions of butterflies.

All his fears were for naught.

The show was amazing. He couldn't have imagined it being any better. He'd remembered all his lines perfectly and didn't mess up once. Katniss was brilliant, as always. The audience loved her singing, but he wasn't all too surprised about that. In the end, as the curtain began to lower, his heart pounded with excitement as people stood up and clapped. He'd never felt so euphoric. That is, until the curtain closed and Katniss ran over and gave him a hug. _Nothing_ could top that.

"I knew you'd be great! You were so perfect!" she gushed. "You're seriously amazing."

Peeta felt he must be dreaming. He was so dazed and speechless, all he could manage to respond with was a short and quiet, "You too." If he'd been more composed and could string more than two words together without sounding like an idiot, he would've told her of the infinite ways in which he thought she was amazing.

Afterwards, he watched with wistful admiration as her parents greeted her. After many hugs and proud, congratulatory words, she gleefully laughed as her father picked her up and placed her on his shoulders.

His own father hugged him and said he did a brilliant job, but what really shocked him was when his mother hugged him too, stating somewhat flippantly, "You didn't do too badly. I'm surprised you didn't embarrass me." He knew that was as close to a compliment as he'd get from her, and he was more than happy to take it.

As they filed out of the auditorium, he kept his eyes on the Everdeens, with Katniss still hoisted upon her father's shoulders. His breath caught in his chest as she glanced back at him, giving a small smile and a wave. He waved back at the beautiful girl who gave him courage and butterflies, feeling as if the grin on his face would be permanent.


End file.
